Speaking
to the media after the signing in Kingston of a memorandum of understanding
with the Chinese Ambassador, Tian Qui, Jamaica’s Minister of Foreign Affairs
and Foreign Trade, Kamina Johnson Smith, said that it will allow the two
countries to identify specific proposals for projects in priority areas.

“With
today’s signing of the MOU, our two countries must now…develop a mechanism by
which projects and programmes in priority areas may be proposed and evaluated
at the technical level, forming the basis for potential agreements,” she said.

Jamaica
hopes that the agreement will lead to Chinese financing and investment in areas
that support the development of its infrastructure, logistics and manufacturing
capacity and its global connectivity. “Such connectivity and the potential it
holds can serve as a catalyst for bringing Jamaica closer to [the] attainment
of our economic growth and sustainable development goals,” Johnson Smith
observed.

China
already has multiple investments in Jamaica in bauxite, sugar, and industrial
parks and has been involved in several major infrastructure projects, and in providing
greater global connectivity.

The
MOU also provides for policy coordination, financial support and other linkages
and is expected to enhance Jamaica’s independence and sovereignty at a time
when the Trump Administration has reasserted its belief in the Monroe Doctrine
and its hegemonic role in the Western Hemisphere.

During
a recent tour of Latin America, the US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, told US
allies in the hemisphere that Chinese investments were “corrosive, giving life
to corruption, and eroding good governance.”
Subsequently, the US National Security Adviser, John Bolton, speaking in
the context of new US sanctions on Cuba (see below) suggested that the
hemisphere was now subject to a US hegemony. “We proudly proclaim for all to
hear: the Monroe Doctrine is alive and well”, he told a Miami audience.

In
a rebuttal of Pompeo’s remarks Zhao Bentang, Director-General of the Department
of Latin American and Caribbean Affairs at China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
said that China will not force the region to choose sides while describing
Pompeo’s remarks as slanderous and insulting to its wisdom and that of the
countries of Latin America and the Caribbean.

“China
will never force Latin America to take sides between China and the US, nor does
it want the current Sino-US disputes to affect China-Latin America
relations,” he said in an interview with the Chinese Government linked
Global Times. He also urged the US to objectively view China-Latin American
ties.

Jamaica
is the tenth Caribbean nation to join the BRI and follows Trinidad, Suriname,
Guyana, Antigua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Cuba, and the Dominican Republic.
The Bahamas, while a significant previous recipient of Chinese investment, has
not joined the BRI. St Lucia, St Kitts,
Haiti, St Vincent, and Belize recognise Taiwan and not China.

The
BRI and its maritime counterpart offer new forms of international development
cooperation by promoting connectivity across countries and regions. It also provides
a framework intended to bring shared benefits to China and the nations it
partners with. Under the initiative, China anticipates investing heavily in a
country’s infrastructure and economy and promoting two-way trade.

The
signing of the MOU came shortly before the publication of a report to the
American Congress on Chinese influence in the Caribbean and Latin America.

Produced
by the US Congressional Research Service, ‘China’s Engagement with Latin
America and the Caribbean’ examines the implications of growing Chinese
influence in the region and the extension of its Belt and Road initiative to
the Americas.

It
suggested under the Trump Administration, US thinking about Chinese influence
in the region has moved from being positive to critical, with Washington
believing that “China seeks to pull the region into its orbit through State-led
investments and loans”. The report noted that areas of US concern included
growing Chinese investment in regional ports of strategic value, infrastructure
investments, and growing arms sales. It suggests that the BRI could lead to the
creation of unsustainable debt and economies “becoming less competitive in
manufacturing and agricultural technologies, and more dependent upon
commodities exports to China and elsewhere”. The report however recognised that
regional leaders and analysts remain doubtful about the US Administration’s
concerns about Chinese engagement in the hemisphere.

Meanwhile Antigua’s Prime Minister, Gaston Browne, has again publicly criticised the US’ position on China. Speaking at an event to mark the handover of a Chinese funded community centre, he called upon the US to put in place a framework from which developing countries could benefit. Browne said that Beijing is providing concessional loans at better rates than the World Bank, noting that Chinese lending extended for up to 20 years, with a five year’s moratorium at two percent interest.

This is a lead article from Caribbean Insight, The Caribbean Council’s flagship fortnightly publication. From The Bahamas to French Guiana, each edition consists of country-by-country analysis of the leading news stories of consequence, distilling business and political developments across the Caribbean into a single must-read publication. Please follow the links on the right-hand side of this page to subscribe, or access a free trial.

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